Higgins and the Robot

Ha! Now that’s got you wondering hasn’t it, and I’m not going to tell you about it till the end!

I’ve got quite a backlog of photos in the camera because all this tinkering with the blog and the studio has meant I’m really behind on posts. I was also full of good intentions to make pretty Easter things (I have to confess to 5 blown egg shells which didn’t get painted LAST Easter -I’ve forgotten the excuse I had then) . It’s been pretty inpossible to find any of my equipment however, seeing as it’s all packed in boxes in the spare room, and I’m trying to bring it all out slowly so I can sort it to avoid the minestrone type mixture of stuff I usually end up with when I’m working.

I did have wool and needles to hand though so I’ve been able to do a little knitting project AND write a knitting pattern so I have been putting in more than my twenty minutes of creativity a day.

Firstly, I managed to get a picture of the Twisted Hazel which I gave my Mother for Mother’s Day several years ago. It’s qite slow growing, and that first year had just the one catkin so it’s doing pretty well now.

The little daffodils sheltering underneath look so pretty. The miniature ones do so much better in this windy spot because they don’t get flattened as easily. It was even warm enough for not just one, but two ladybirds. I’ve only just spotted the second one.

With a birthday in the family this weekend and a celebratory lunch I’ve got the Easter Tree up and ready. This is where the painted eggs are supposed to hanging… Anyway, the little decorations look pretty, and the pink primroses set it off nicely.

Then there were the egg cosies, knitted in my favourite wool. (Hasn’t it gone a long way since I did all that dyeing last year? Time for a fresh batch with new colours very soon)

I’ve put the pattern in the tutorial section which you’ll find at the top under the banner.
And now for that robot… Several years ago a very clever person, someone who got their priorities in life just right, invented a robot vacuum cleaner. It was HUGELY expensive and I said at the time, if I ever win the lottery I’m having one of those. Well time went by …and I still haven’t won the lottery… but the price of the vacuum cleaner went down to a nearly sensible price, and Lakeland featured them in their catalogue and I thought ‘Why not?’ So Kryton came to live with us. He sits under the work top in the utility room until he’s needed, charges out with a triumphant little fanfare when he is switched on, trundles round the room humming and sucking away and spins frantically round on the spot with a blue light flashing when he finds a particularly filthy bit . Once he’s finished he wheels himself back to the docking station and parks himself with another fanfare before going back on charge, the light on top pulsing red like a heart beat. Occasionally we might have a little problem and Kryton stops, gives a mournful little toot and says, in a strongly American accented female voice, ‘Please clean Roomba’s brushes’ . I can’t tell you how disconcerting that was the first time that happened. Anyway, it’s great to be able to drink coffee and watch the vacuum doing its stuff without me and if that makes me sound totally lazy, well…

We also had an amusing moment when Higgins, as a very small puppy, went behind Kryton’s curtain and climbed on top, stood on the go button and rode out on top looking very surprised! Not a lot fazes Higgins, but you can imagine he’s not Kryton’s number one fan, especially when it chases him round the room with the filth detector light flashing. When I got to the end of the studio painting I took the vacuum out to clean the floor prior to painting it and, as Higgins does like to be in on everything, he joined in.

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About penny

I live in Norfolk, England in a cottage on the edge of the Norfolk Broads where it can be peaceful and beautiful, or wet and muddy, or occasionally wild and windswept. With me is husband Tim, Henry the elderly and opinionated tabby cat, and Higgins, the miniature dachshund with a massive personality. You’ll find me chattering on about wool and textiles, knitting and crochet, recipes, books and patterns, exhibitions and shopping and of course, the adventures of a small dog!
Planet Penny has a Facebook Page, you can find me on UK Handmade and I am featured on Channel4/4Homes Favourite Craft Blog List.

Thanks Penny, that mental picture of Higgins riding forth like Boadicea, or however she’s spelling her name these days, got my chuckle chops wobbling! Polly kindly arranged my stored wool etc., in the back bedroom as a Mother’s day present. This weekend’s unexpected decorating means we are now sleeping in amongst the wool etc., I keep expecting to see Aunty Wainwright popping up to try to sell me some of it! Hilary x

Hi Penny,
Thanks for leaving a comment about my cake – can’t wait to see a picture of the Tiger wedding cake!
Thanks for posting the egg cosies, I’m thinking that I might be able to crochet one or two before Sunday…
Your story about poor Higgins made me laugh! I might need a robot with all that crocheting you’ve inspired me to do!
Thanks!
a-m x

Oh Higgin’s, you sweet little darling! When you do a post with Higgins in it, it’s very difficult to concentrate on the rest of the content in your post Penny! Sorry ’bout that! I love his form, his shape. I just love Dachshunds. Your egg cosies are just fantastic, by-the-way, the flowers on the top are just adorable, and thank you very much for the pattern. Love Vanessa xxx

Oh that story is just too funny! Poor Higgins 🙂 I always wondered what it would be like to have a robot vac – I think I’d spend half my time lifting it up and down steps in this house sadly or I’d be after one like a shot!

Hi Penny,
Found you at Marmalade Rose and had to pop in to encourage you to join the 20 Minuters! I really have found it fun and a good reason why I am sitting “doing my thing!”
If you call in on my blog I have posted about Fiona and the 20 Minuters, I am sure you would be pleased if you joined :0)
I love your little egg cozies – I think my egg would go cold while I just sat gazing and smiling at it!
Blessings! Val xx

Just popped over from silver pebble and can’t stop laughing at this story. I mean, your cake looks delicious and your egg cosies are the cutest I’ve ever seen, but a dog riding on a robot hoover – that has to be the best blog story I’ve ever come across!

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[SHALL WE DO THIS?]
I am going to do it - there will be FREE Knit Along to make a patchwork blanket and it will begin on 25th August.
Every month you will get charts and instructions to make a 30 cm knitted square.
There will be prizes and possibly a Facebook group (if there is enough interest) and I would love a hashtag.
I am really excited about this - I hope that you will join in, it is for novice knitters as well as more experienced and only requires you to be able to do stocking stitch (knit and purl)
You can sign up for the PDF with the kit list and for a bit more info bit.ly/2tGrXAA